Tonight, Christina and I will be attending the Trampled by Turtles concert at the Reif Center in Grand Rapids. The Turtles are making their 10th anniversary tour around Minnesota, hitting venues where they got their start. Grand Rapids is the hometown of bassist Tim Saxhaug. Opening for TBT is Actual Wolf, whose frontman Eric Pollard is also from Grand Rapids. In fact, both Saxhaug and Pollard had the same kindergarten teacher my kids have had in school these last couple years. Anyway, it’s a homecoming.
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| Actual Wolf at last summer’s Great Northern Radio Show in Brainerd. |
Times like this I realize that I don’t go to many things, especially concerts. I listen to the radio and my MP3 player. Music is very personal to me. Experiencing it with others, I’m told, is very special. I started the Great Northern Radio Show on this very principle, but it occurs to me that my position as producer allows me to treat a large number of professional musicians like an MP3 player. “Hey, Pollard. Play “Minneapolis.” Now play it again.” This is my favorite part about having a radio show.
But going to a show, sitting with a bunch of people who know what to do at concerts, interacting with those people by means of “conversation” and saying “woooooo” or “WOOOOOO?” I have to prepare myself. At least I have a cute date. I’d be a pretty big mess about this on my own.
See you at the show, northern Minnesota. This concert sold out faster than any other in this history of the Reif Center. I’m hoping at least a few of these folks come back to the Reif on June 29 to hear Actual Wolf and more in my Great Northern Radio Show. I’ll be up on stage for that one, pushing buttons. Something I know how to do.
UPDATE: Trampled by Turtles is doing an in-studio interview on Northern Community Radio at about 3 p.m. Stream it here or listen on 91.7 KAXE Grand Rapids or 90.5 KBXE Bemidji.
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